Saturday, November 26th, 2011

Looking Up

Toronto, Ontario

I looked up at the trekking trail in a different way today. I looked up with trees barren, all kinds of things were exposed. Apart from black and grey squirrels ‘hanging out’, wiggling their tails, there were master crafted nests. In a short half an hour stretch I counted 6 hornets’ nests, some high and some low, practically dangling from the edge of a branch. The rest of the dwellings belonged to the bird family. There were hundreds. They come in dimensions from the size and shape of a small mug to that of the size of a small osprey’s nest.

I was amazed by the diversity of them and it was adventurous for me to explore this all. The last time I tilted my head slightly and looked at what’s above instead of what’s directly in front of me or below me, was when in Manhattan on Broadway I was looking at all the skyscrapers and flashing signs. That, right there, is the contrast of two worlds. The man made versus nature.

There’s not a day that goes by while walking when I question the direction of our techy and also ticky tacky world. Whether in Buenos Aires, Delhi, a US or Canadian city, the increase of the use of automation is creating a congestion that will be beyond our belief in our lifetime. In fact, automobiles for example, are the real hornets nests that are the sting of our society.

Srila Prabhupada, our guru, had the vision for a protected environment with eco-agro-friendly elements, as a way to counter the world of mass distraction and mass destruction. I sometimes feel like I’m living in this heaven walking through a tree zone. I often flashback to 500 years before and how simpler times were more wholesome times.

I will continue to look up, but not just at hornets or birds’ nests, but at a dream of a permanent, clear sky, that won’t be blackened by our own greedy residue of manufactured nonsense. We live in excess and for that there will be no success. Show me a horse, show me a buggy, and I’ll be humbled. Show me a car to drive and I’ll think I’m God in big time control.

I came back from this walk today to step into a wedding. Rupanuga, a very committed member devotee and attendee at this occasion of Suneet and Mahasundari’s wedding, mentioned to me that travelling can be increasingly a challenge to deal with, even to get to a wedding.

Yes, Rupa, you’re right. What are we all going to do about it? Here’s my crazy answer, stop driving and start living, so we can count the nests.

10 Km